Edward Boss Prado Foundation hosts 11th annual Fit 4 Fall event

Laura Perry, far right, donates to the Edward Boss Prado Foundation Fit for Fall event. Photo by Kaylee Arca 

By Kaylee Arca

Photo by Kaylee Arca

Back to school time is here and The Edward Boss Prado Foundation celebrated by hosting its 11th annual Fit 4 Fall event. Almost 50 volunteers from the community gathered at CEO Cecelia Ponzini’s home to organize donations and fill backpacks with $40,000 of school supplies for students.

The volunteers prepared an estimated 3,500 backpacks for Morgan Hill Unified School District families in need. The filled bags were then transported to Cecelia’s Closet and Food Pantry where students from hundreds of families chose a backpack, pack of new socks and underwear, and enjoyed a free hotdog lunch provided by the Kiwanis Club of Morgan Hill.

“Going back to school on their first day and having a backpack, having supplies, is really so, so important for those families who are in need,” said Morgan Hill Mayor Mark Turner. “I mean, for them to show up without those things can be a real challenge and difficulty for kids.”

The diverse group of volunteers included first responders, local dignitaries, city of Morgan Hill staff, the Rotary Club of Morgan Hill members, the American Association of University Women (AAUW), and various Morgan Hill-based banks.

“It feels good to have so many volunteers (here) and they want to volunteer,” Ponzini said.

Each volunteer in attendance received a personal phone call invitation from Ponzini to help organize the donations and fill the backpacks at her home.

“And you can see with so many people coming together to help out that she has really developed a great network of support,” Turner said. “I mean, she’s got a lot of backpacks and people are just lining up to donate. It’s a powerful movement she’s established.”

The Edward Boss Prado Foundation was established by Cecelia and Gary Ponzini in 2013 after the death of Cecelia’s son. The nonprofit prides itself on only running on community donations.

“I don’t apply for big grants because they want information on our families, and I know that some are undocumented,” Cecelia said.

Ponzini loves seeing the excited children after they choose their backpacks. Cecelia recalled the first year she hosted Fit 4 Fall, a little boy excitedly selected and smelled a new pack of underwear and said, “Mom, these are new!”

“We could not do the programs that we run without our surrounding communities,” she exclaimed.

“Our community comes together to support those who just have a need, whether it’s because they’re less fortunate or something else going on in their lives, we have a very supportive community willing to help others,” Turner said.

Kaylee Arca is a Morgan Hill-based freelance reporter.